① I have never inflicted a pain on the living that hasn’t paid back in full (and more) in care. ② I have never made the mistake of discarding the usable. ③ I am fully aware and capable of repelling my desire to impose my values on those dearest to me. ④ There was never a better time to repurpose our living quarters for the safekeeping of those dearest to me. ⑤ My friends don’t concern themselves with the things they cannot do, so why should I? ⑥ When in doubt, turn to our shared interests for positive reinforcement. ⑦ I know utility can mean many things, and it’s reasonable to want to find utility in meaning. ⑧ The world opened up to make room for me, and thus, therein, a burden of responsibility can fall to no one else. ⑨ I know the fruit of my labour will inspire the us of tomorrow. ⑩ No one can conceive of the power I wield.
Sometimes the gods of the algorithm see to it that you’re swiftly punished for listening to music on YouTube. Is it justified to be so exacted upon? I wonder. Do these gods deliver their hand to my face in ambivalence, benevolence, or malevolence? Ask yourself—deeply ask yourself, ‘What exactly is the Internet experience here for?’
I present to you, here, the seed of Satan:
Mixes. Back-to-back mixes. And in case it wasn’t clear, these are the evil in your heart! They are the root of EVIL and SUFFERING in this world we call home!
Let us explore the constituents of
—EVIL ・・・
Firstly, ‘evil’ is an acronym for ‘everything vile in the land’! Clearly, the caveman who thought up fire was onto something! Let me explain exactly what he thought so that you, too, can comprehend:
① ‘It is hot!’ ② ‘It destroys!’ ③ ‘In its absence, everything is good and pleasant!’
True, we shouldn’t be blaming cavemen for thinking about fire, but that doesn’t mean casually glossing over the details will benefit us! As the evidence looms, and as the weight of our decisions pale in comparison to the meaning of the sheer number of non-believers, only a hyper-intelligent force like electricity can save us!
Case in point, electricity is emphasizing the importance of mixes to me! This means our fate is being disturbed! It is utilizing the one intermediary that I know it would know I would know would never betray the fabric of being: cyber-foreshadowingI
Cyber-foreshadowing can be summarized in three sets of 15 points; however, for your convenience, I have truncated and simplified the nuances within:
• Algorithms predict the future.
To recap, hot is like hell, evil is on land, etc., etc. Furthermore, with the appearance of unforgiving, back-to-back mixes, a call to every decent human being has been sounded: elucidate YouTube to the urgency of extending customization of the tags for the home feed page.
LET THERE BE NO MIXES WHERE MIXES ARE UNWANTED!!!!!!!!
In the pursuit of the magnum opus in every discipline (because ruling over the domains of life and death sometimes need to take a back seat), I’ll share with you one of many great strides I’d made while polishing the gold that is my imagination:
Upon reflection, and though the truth may yet be quite out of reach, it is possible the polishing agent I’m using is not top-of-the-line. Truly, it is hard to accommodate this deviation in my mindscape so farseeing. That being said, I am familiar with so-called established consensus and the weight of opposing their pervasive sensibilities. For this reason, I, with great trepidation, open myself to receiving advice about products that don’t both wane with the flavour of diminishing returns and conceal the participation of forever chemicals in their makeup.
I am not playing Trials Rising in this video; I am not Shishiro Botan; audio found in this video is attributed to a performance titled 【Trials Rising】クセがすごいんじゃ【獅白ぼたん/ホロライブ】.
I think 獅白ぼたん’s approach to entertainment is likeable. I appreciate a select few other Hololive talents, too, but somehow this is where the puzzle pieces fall. Actually, it has been a long time since I last watched Botan – or any other vtuber, for that matter. It was only a few days ago that I remembered how much fun it was watching Botan play Trials Rising years ago. This was when the idea of putting together an off video became appealing.
Please erupt with tuffs of black smoke when on the grind!
I felt that clipping in my bones! 「そうゆう問題じゃない！」I get the feeling it wasn’t purposeful, but that isn’t to subtract from her feelings of betrayal. In fact, as far as I’m concerned, the speciality of the pairing of parameters as delicate as this with the intenseness Takahashi Rie is channeling for Kano stands to lift it to one of the most moving, beautiful moments in anime! And it tore my heart out!
Some of you with your keen eyes realized there was no mention of Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei in our Anime’s Greatest Hits articles. There is a reasonable explanation for this: Despite adoring this series, I have a really hard time watching it, and thus, have been unable to complete a total run-through in my ~7 years of ani-watching. To show that I operate in good-faith, when possible, there will be a ‘minimal’ review, not unlike the reviews presented prior, to summarize progress made. In the spirit of full transparency, I had watched to episode seven of season two; however, we’re just going to do that again!
And this is about as far as I was able to get in episode one a couple days ago! Itoshiki finds himself on cult island and tries to commit suicide! We also meet Hitou Nami!
Favourite songs, vol. 0004: A Slight Reimagining
Herein will be a copy-paste of a playlist description I’d made yesterday! Expect fluctuations in the ‘Favourite songs’ brand from here on out! It’s simple: There has been much deliberation on what makes a ‘favourite’ song, and not to mention, happenstance has led us to this point, and in so doing, it’s perfectly reasonable for things to develop, mature, and evolve, as things do.
In the future, with a new beating heart, there should be a resurrection of ‘Favourite songs’. And no doubt, there, surely, will be an attempt to explain what preconceptions, ruminations… etc., etc. Look forward to it!
007. Glory 3usi9 feat. Hatsune Miku〈Nanou〉andLOIDs -All time best of Nanou- 008. Restoration ～沈黙の空～〘KOTOKO〙Restoration ～沈黙の空～ 009. Soul of Rouge〘ALiCE’S EMOTiON〙Trois Rouge 010. 繰りかえす四季模様 ～Remember View〘K2 SOUND〙麗鳴 RAY-MEI
ShibayanRecords 011. 雨はりらりら〘マジコ カタストロフィ〙 012. Fall in the Dark〘マジコ カタストロフィ〙 013. Clockup Flowers〘マジコ カタストロフィ〙 014. ・－・・ －－－ ・・・－ ・〘マジコ カタストロフィ〙 015. Interstice of gams〘オトメキュート〙 016. モノクロ・インザナイト〘Adrastea〙 017. SUPER MOON〘Adrastea〙 018. 秋扇〘ココロバイブレーション〙 019. 彼と彼女とわたしの話【オトメキュート】 020. オズネイ・ハマンはもういらない【ムソウマテリアライズ】 021. いつか見たもの〘マジコ カタストロフィ〙 022. 賢者の極北「Adrastea」 023. シンデレラは魔法使い〈ムソウマテリアライズ〉 024. タイニーリトル・アジアンタム【TOHO BOSSA NOVA 2】 025. アナタガモトメルモノ「キセキ☆インパルス~ emotional feedback」 026. ・-・・—・・・-・(signum/ii remix)【DISCO METRIC】
Alstroemeria Records 027. Fire〘of memories〙 028. Bad Apple!! feat.nomico (ANIMELO SUMMER LIVE 2010 EDIT)〘POP | CULTURE〙 029. Bad Apple!! feat.nomico (Nhato Remix)〘10th Anniversary Bad Apple!! feat.nomico〙 030. Dream Battle〘of memories〙 031. The Brilliant Flowers〘The Brilliant Flowers〙 032. The Last Judgement〘EXSERENS〙 033. letter by letter「POP | CULTURE 8」 034. Entrance + Dithering Train「Structured Dancehall」 035. DREAMLIGHTS【POP | CULTURE】 036. Romantic Children〈KILLED DANCEHALL〉 037. Deeper Than Your Eyes, Farther Than Platinum Moon〈POP | CULTURE 3〉 038. NIGHTFALL (2013 RE-EDIT)【DECADE OF EXPOSE】 039. Lunatic Princess「Fragment Reactions」 040. Crescent Moon「ENCLOSED DANCEHALL」 041. Flight on tears「Trois Noir」 042. Eternal Dream【POP | CULTURE】 043. Ancient「HAUNTED DANCEHALL」 044. キャプテン・ムラサ〘Third Ensemble Noir〙
Studio “Syrup Comfiture” 045. アモリタチテカミトミユ「Where Is Love」 046. camouflage〘white clear〙 047. AraHitoGami〈show me your love〉 048. monochrome〈Blossom〉 049. TRUE〔ERROR〕 050. maplelove.『Poplica*』love 051. Close to you (and me)「Blossom」 052. and Juliet〈True Hearts?〉 053. Cloudy, later fair『Blossom』 054. Selection 【Where Is Love】 055. good-bye days.「Poplica*」love 056. 我亲爱傀儡「white clear」 057. Myosotis alpestris〈True Hearts?〉 058. 月影少女【over】 059. R.I.N〈Blossom〉 060. Coward〈Blossom〉 061. 月影少女 – Poplica* Remix《2 chain》
062. Rapture – Taishi Remix【Poplica*】Poptrick 063. Stardust Reverie〘Sprite Wing〙幻想郷の星雨日和 064. Purify「GET IN THE RING」Agony 065. Unbind【GET IN THE RING】An ordinary life 066. 酔花「Riverside」よひむすび 067. Darkness Power [Tracy Remix]「Amateras Records」Resonate Anthems 068. Alice Maestera [Tracy Remix Extended Ver.]「Amateras Records」Endless Acceleration -Amateras Records Remixes Vol.4- 069. Pure My Soul「Lapis Moss」なないろフィロソフィア 070. ココロノシグナル「SYNC.ART’S」MIND CONNECTION 071. cardiac sound 「EastNewSound」Cleave Spark 072. 星屑のアンサンブル -LNB7 Remix-【はちみつれもん】Light Night Beat 7 073. D.E.S.I.R.E「SOUND HOLIC」霧雨 074. Ferocious Stasis【UraniumW】Ferocious Stasis 075. 花畑のエリカ「Art of Heart」Misty in Chaos 076. If Your Eyes Are Jade Colour「Echoes Construction」Shake Your Mind 077. Desire Drive「floater-io」Delightful Sense 078. Gungnir 「Shikigami Records」 079. SF【森羅万象】SF 080. SIGN「THE OTHER FLOWER」葵 081. 阿吽ノ宴「THE OTHER FLOWER」葵 082. Night Blooms「THE OTHER FLOWER」柊 083. 物見鴉の鬼渡し「twinkle＊twinkle」Fortune Stories 084. So long 【twinkle＊twinkle】SUPERNOVA 085. SUPERNOVA【twinkle＊twinkle】SUPERNOVA 086. Turn Back Time【twinkle＊twinkle】SUPERNOVA 087. Radiant Future 【twinkle＊twinkle】SUPERNOVA 088. Puppet【発熱巫女～ず】Origin of Love 089. Transparent【発熱巫女～ず】Starlight Prelude 090. The Party of Seven Witches【Electro.muster】Electro.sinker 091. Slow Step -First Love Comes Again-〚Electro.muster〛Electro.sinker 092. LAST DAY GOOD NIGHT「ZYTOKINE」東方PARTYBOX02 093. Somersault〈TRäkker〉GWAVE Clubsound Project “Somersault” 094. Separate Wings〘TRäkker〙TRanswing -The Inner Gaze- 095. さくらセンチメンタル《Poplica*》Replica* 096. シャングリラ【森羅万象】第16回博麗神社例大祭会場限定おまけCD
Halozy 097. まっしろな雪「東方幻奏響uroboros弐 ～fAIRYtAILoVERdRIVE～」 098. 143 (extended mix)【864】 099. 感傷の摩天楼〔Aqua Trytone〕 100. Three Magic DiGiTAL WiNG TRANCE Remix)「Future Love」 101. Don’t let you down【Viva Evolution】 102. runaway【東方幻奏響UROBOROS肆 ～dEATHtINYoVERdRIVE～】 103. Paranoid Lost｟Tonic Triangle｠ 104. 砂のこども「Lucky 7」 105. 白い地図「Halozy」東方Compilation CD 萃星霜 106. 世田谷グッバイ「東方幻奏響UROBOROS業 ～eNDoFtHEuLTIMATEoVERdRIVE～」 107. 見えない手「Grand Slam – Extra Version」
As stated upfront in the description, there are going to be errors. For instance, you’ll notice I’d included a couple Poplica* songs with Syrufit. This is because of confusion, then hindsight, then laziness. Enjoy!
Shibayan’s 月齢11.3のキャンドルマジック from ココロバイブレーション doesn’t make an appearance in the playlist because of plain oversight. I’m actually pretty sure it was included in a previous Favourite songs article! Anyways…
To the musically orientated, the glaring absence of singers is somewhat of a problem to me too! On one hand, it would be cool to link up the albums to VGMdb or Touhou Wiki when applicable – and to do so now. On the other, I’d prefer to rush this article out, and then, when I’m caught up in another wave of fierce ambition, do all that hyperlinking business!
Finally, I am aware that Glory 3usi9 doesn’t technically have the ‘feat.’ part in the song name. It’s one of those things where I don’t really know how to jot down Vocaloid songs. The irony of this is not lost on me. Suffice to say, ‘Blame it on my stubbornness!’
☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆～Special edit p062, 01-06-24～☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ Here’s a special mention for Necro Fantasia (ALR Rewind Remix) off ABANDONED DANCEHALL. The playlist has a handful of albums at the end, so you’ll have to forgive me for not ‘including’ this one as a ‘favourite’ song before!
☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆～Special update cz3f, 01-06-24～☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ I’ve realized how cool it would be to have an A/V capture box. I don’t have a CRT anymore, but with a capture box, I’d be able to really go ham! But for now, I’ll slowly add pictures for the titles appearing in this list, taken with my camera! ^^ ———————— Welcome to another installment of Blessed are the Footsteps to Enlightenment!
Note: Upon multiple thorough five-minute skims of the Internet, it appears it’s up to me to get the screenshots I want for these 100-out-of-100 games. Expect massive delays in the follow-through of this article, because there are various celestial bodies required to be in alignment for any progress, in this regard, to be made. Apologies in advance!
Is This Thing Turned On, part 0003: Am I Being Diluded, or Am I a Gamer?
01. Turok: Dinosaur Hunter (1997); played on: N64 | My infallible score: 100/100
02. Perfect Dark (2000); played on: N64 | My infallible score: 100/100
03. Liero (1999); played on: PC | My infallible score: 100/100
04. The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (2002); played on: Xbox | My infallible score: 100/100
05. Borderlands (2009); played on: Xbox 360, Playstation 3, & PC | My infallible score: 100/100
06. XIII (2003); played on: PC & Xbox | My infallible score: 100/100
07. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011); played on: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, & PC | My infallible score: 100/100
08. Senran Kagura: Peach Beach Splash (2017); played on: PC | My infallible score: 100/100
Honestly, I’d considered putting a few other games in this list; however, doing so would be insincere. For example, IPs like Total Annihilation, Army Men: Sarge’s Heroes, Earthworm Jim, Sonic, Clayfighter, Virtua Fighter, Mortal Kombat, Silent Hill, Fallout, & maybe a few others, while being very meaningful to me, don’t quite satisfy the 100-out-of-100 brand. This is for various reasons such as the following: The release wasn’t played very much, nostalgia is a powerful motivator, after weighing pros against cons, its addition feels illegitimate, and ability fell short to ‘really’ enjoy.. Additionally, there are a couple entries from the Call of Duty franchise that could be mentioned: World at War, 4, & Black Ops. Though I certainly reaped much fun from these ones, how does one gauge the quality when fun is reliant on latency?
Now, instead of name-dropping these IPs and forgetting about them, let me tell you about my favourite things from the releases I’d played!
Is This Thing Turned On, part 0003.5: Where Do I Find the Time?
Sonic the Hedgehog 2: • Emerald Hill & Chemical Plant zone themes Total Annihilation: • Title menu drone • Core Shadow bomber • Coast to Coast or Over Crude Water Sonic 3D Blast: • Spring Stadium zone Earthworm Jim: • THIS GAME ROCKS! Army Men: Sarge’s Heroes • You’re literally a toy soldier! It’s fucking awesome! Clayfighter 63⅓: • Taffy: ‘Gumball!’ Virtua Fighter:
• Check out the scan of Akira there! It is devastatingly impressive! (You don’t have to make a Tumblr account! Become a Patron of The Video Game Archive TODAY!) Silent Hill 2: • Literally the scariest game ever! So, it’s my favourite of being too afraid to play, I guess! Mortal Kombat 3: • Smoke, obviously! (Wish I had MKII, too!) Fallout 3: • Sniping w/ Ol’ Painless w/ 10 luck and missing every time • Stashing all the weapons in the women’s in Megaton • Save scumming for speech checks • Worshiping the lead pipe
I actually don’t understand this HTML/shortcode/embed technology, so when in doubt, go ahead and inspect the source of this page! Also, I’d never really used IMDb; TMDB may be better in some ways!
This is a list of 100-out-of-100s (almost) in the order I remembered them!
Is This Thing Turned On, part 0001: A Limited Cinema Space
01. Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (1931) | My infallible score: 100/100
02. The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945) | My infallible score: 100/100
03. Camille (1936) | My infallible score: 100/100
04. Grand Hotel (1932) | My infallible score: 100/100
05. The 39 Steps (1935) | My infallible score: 100/100
06. Rope (1948) | My infallible score: 100/100
07. The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) | My infallible score: 100/100
08. Moonraker (1979) | My infallible score: 100/100
09. Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) | My infallible score: 100/100
10. Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) | My infallible score: 100/100
Version 1.0.0
11. Austin Powers In Goldmember (2002) | My infallible score: 100/100
12. Airplane! (1980) | My infallible score: 100/100
13. Hot Shots! (1991) | My infallible score: 100/100
14. Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993) | My infallible score: 100/100
15. Scary Movie (2000) | My infallible score: 100/100
Is This Thing Turned On, part 0002: A Limited Series Space
01. Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace (2004) | My infallible score: 100/100
02. Black Books (2000 – 2004) | My infallible score: 100/100
03. The Ren & Stimpy Show (1991 – 1996) | My infallible score: 100/100
Have you heard of ‘Ore ga Suki nano wa Imouto dakedo Imouto ja Nai’? The English title is ‘My Sister, My Writer’. I’m not particularly sure why it’s rated 43% on Anilist, 4.90 (out of 10, I’m assuming) on MAL, and 4.37 on aniDB, but at the very least, I enjoyed it. And now that I’m older and more mature (or is it because I’d seen so much anime?), the fun of the show shines through – almost blindingly so!
And so, I’m on my second viewing, and it’s reassuring these eyes that had thought so fondly of this story before hadn’t succumbed to an exaggerated fondness all this time. It makes me wonder what goes into bringing the absurd to life. That, in of itself, is an art I’ve flirted with:
• The MC is your average, normal guy. • He has to save the world when he’s reincarnated in another world. • At the end of the story, after he’d saved the world, it is revealed that every single person he’d encountered in the world is a family member who’d reincarnated after dying in his lifetime on Earth.
Or:
• The year is 1995; the future is here. • A startup company grows into the most beastly industry, taking the world by storm through the sale of original products that serve no purpose nor have any aesthetic value.
Or my grand opus:
• The money stops working.
That final idea has an amount of pen to paper behind it, but… well… anyways…
Here lies the crux of this article: It appears I’ve burnt myself out of anime again. I just don’t feel like watching anything, and we’re coming into Summer, of all the things!
I promise you: I have tried to stay not burnt out too! Like I went and tried starting Arte and Strongest Exorcist again, yet each of these viewings made it only to episode two! See? I’m burnt out! I can’t help it! Over the course of the past week or so, there’d been a sprinkling of other titles like Goburin Sureiya-san (2nd viewing; episode seven—GET THIS MAN A POTION PRONTO!), My Sister, My Writer (2nd viewing; episode three) among others, too.
And so, I am here writing this while listening to POP | CULTURE 2, though it should be noted, this is the third day of putting it together. I’ve, more or less, just been coasting along for this past week, listening to music and wishing for more chances to participate in conversations on Discord. Heck! I even tried starting Edgerunners the other day! Unfortunately, it didn’t look like the kind of anime I’m interested in. And so, I am here trying to figure out how to make this article the least bit interesting…
It is pretty dumb that I want to engage with the user base of this Discord though, honestly. It’s frustrating to want to share the joy I get from anime (and, to a certain extent, manga) with people who have all been swept up by Internet chatroom culture. Like ‘fire and forget’ is a phrase that’d never been more applicable to communications, when it, in fact, is meant to describe a mechanism in games. It’s simple, really: Accept no one gives a fuck about your contributions to conversations, that they don’t share the same principles as you, that there are genuine otaku amongst the bunch, but mostly all have dissimilar tastes to you, and that heavily sprinkled amidst the ‘community’ are snowflakes and retards.
I do want to organize a good community of otaku on—POP | CULTURE 6 is now playing—somewhere. Discord is a waste of time because their ToS/community guidelines are all about inclusivity and compelled speech and, in general, encourages being a retard.
It’s only when I’d sorted through my frustrations that I always come back to the same conclusion: Why don’t I just be happy with the friends I have? The obvious answer is, ‘There is a part of me that still desires something of a wider sampling’. Maybe that… or something. Who knows? I guess they really meant it when they said humans are social creatures. Yet, in the same breath, it appears I’ve gained enough experience (of mainly the disappointment variety) to realize it’s so easy to bark up the wrong tree.
I guess we’re going to see if we can be a bit more honest on Twitter. I must say, it sure is difficult to make progress in this technological world while simultaneously minimizing the broadcasting of my stupidity. It’s like the pipeline of a futuristic online–physical hybrid lifestyle relentlessly tricks you into thinking you’ve reached the end line. It is at the top of the sins: stupidity. I am forgoing the use of cardinal because I don’t actually know what it means.
Anime’s Greatest Hits, pt. V: How to Love Your Antacid
These 3x3s represent me at a time when I, too, was clouded by an unforgiving attachment to false ideals. It is no excuse, but I throw myself at your feet, so that you may reconsider it was I who, despite my honourable intentions, had not a sober thought in my mind! Here, I present to you the new, inspired, and enlightened me:
Personally, it’s hard to believe there is a brief moment in my recent history (07-06-22) stained with such incredulity! Surely, the depths of one’s error can be only so demoralizing! Well, I have seen the light! I am reformed!
R.I.P., Kohaku and S01 of Misfit; you’ll forever be remembered as favourites in a time not so different from days passed.
Anime’s Greatest Hi—
I may be merrily speaking to myself, but wouldn’t it be amazing if 1 x ½ got animated? Additionally, let’s all put our hearts together and let out a resounding hurrah for Slime 300 2, Isekai Ken 2, Arifureta 3, DanMachi 5, 100 Girlfriends 2, Chained Soldier 2, another Quintuplets season (3, I think), and, of course, Maou-sama, Retry! R (because Tron will alone—single-handedly—save the world from despair and corruption before the slime spirit sisters get a chance! Why will this not be up to Fran, you ask? Because Fran is too fucking busy fucking saving the world from pain and destruction!) Looking into the future, there obviously are other anime to get excited about, but I kind of feel like wrapping this up… Oh! That sister harem story—*researches*—’Shiunji-ke no Kodomotachi’! Really, no idea how that one will turn out, but we’ll see; I know it’s the Rent-A-Girlfriend author’s project. Oh!!!!!!!! I just seen it now! Second season of Dress-Up Darling is TBA, too!
Maybe my next piece will have to do with anime we are in dire need of. For now, I’m going to have to tie this one into a neat little bow!
This concept has been on my mind for ‘years’! However, I had always been too this or that to tackle it. Namely that being of embarrassment winning in the end and claiming victory over my conscience. It is only in recent days that I’d been thinking how much of a fool I am to continue starving the part of me that knows sharing is caring.
I’d found a home in anime that other nerds/otaku found before me, and what was it that some of them were able to do? Find respite, family, and satisfaction, among other things – of which you, the reader, whoever you are, also hold dear.
Simply, there will forever (and into the future) be aspects of the medium of animated cartoon that allow for the exploration of greatness and what that means. It isn’t to ignore the vision of the author, but to capitalize on his or her spirit. And when so many fine individuals come together to give life to that spark of vision, greatness can repeat itself again with fresh eyes.
Art is what brings us together and simultaneously places obstacles in between you and me, making our hearts beat out of time. For this reason, I cherish art in all its forms, because there is a charm to be found that you can only see when you quit playing the game.
Anime has left me speechless, mouth agape, hurt, betrayed, excited, uncomfortable, rolling-on-the-floor laughing… and much more over and over! And while I don’t quite have the whole answer to this question, it is apparent the conclusion of emotion is life as a human being—life as a human being in the 21st century.
Thanks to the beauty and transformative powers of these Japanese stories, I feel as though I’d lived many lives. And if it is true feeling in the 21st century is a pathway to life and meaning, then perhaps, in the end, the Holy Grail will be mine!
Anime’s Greatest Hits, pt. I: Straight Through the Heart
I have prepared for you, here, a selection of titles that are amazing:
Here we have:
• Renai Boukun (aka ‘Love Tyrant‘) / 恋愛暴君 • Golden Time / ゴールデンタイム • Ore no Kanojo to Osananajimi ga Shuraba Sugiru (aka ‘Oreshura‘) / 俺の彼女と幼なじみが修羅場すぎる • Shinchou Yuusha: Kono Yuusha ga Ore TUEEE Kuse ni Shinchou Sugiru (aka ‘Shinchou Yuusha‘ or ‘Cautious Hero‘) / 慎重勇者～この勇者が俺ＴＵＥＥＥくせに慎重すぎる～ • Slime Taoshite 300-nen, Shiranai Uchi ni Level MAX ni Nattemashita: Sono ni (aka ‘Slime 300 2nd Season’) / スライム倒して300年、知らないうちにレベルMAXになってました ～そのに～ • Saijaku Tamer wa Gomi Hiroi no Tabi wo Hajimemashita. (aka ‘Weakest Tamer‘(?)) / 最弱テイマーはゴミ拾いの旅を始めました。 • SHOW BY ROCK!! / ＳＨＯＷ ＢＹ ＲＯＣＫ!! • Tensei Shitara Ken Deshita (or ‘Reincarnated as a Sword’) / 転生したら剣でした • Fantasy Bishoujo Juniku Oji-san to (aka ‘Fantasy Knockout‘(?)) / 異世界美少女受肉おじさんと
It is about here that I’ll have to come clean: There are three parts to this ‘greatest hits’ list! Relating to this part, these titles are among the works that I think are amazing; however, it should be noted that this is not an exhaustive bunch for which I feel, more or less, the same attraction.
You’re probably familiar with a feeling of admiration and respect and appreciation for certain things, yes? Well, the titles found in this grouping are a handful of the ones that give off a kind of glow and resonance that hits you straight through the heart. Without that all so necessary whoop and oomph, these stories couldn’t be what they are! And that’s clearly certain!
Bottom line is, if you don’t like three or more of these stories, you’re likely better off going someplace else than to continue! I base this skepticism on a little of this and that!
Take Love Tyrant, for instance: It is a parody on the harem genre, and it accomplishes this feat with grace and tact! That’s why it’s here! Cautious Hero and Fantasy Knockout are amazing comedies too! If you’re anything like me, finding yourself out of your chair, on the floor, and dead multiple times throughout these stories’ runtimes will not be out of the ordinary!
Honestly, I was a little surprised to find six of these stories were isekai when I was putting together my lists, but that just be the way it is sometimes!
I stopped at nine entries here for a rather real reason: I came to realize that there were anime that shared the same jang and wow as these, but to include each and every one of them would have meant taking on a greater responsibility: trying to lump and categorize the plaw with other plaw and cream with other cream, despite most of the titles all containing faint traces of these elements. I, simply, don’t quite have it in me to do that!
Anime’s Greatest Hits, pt. II: Special is a Special Word
I have prepared for you, here, a selection of titles that are amazing + a certain quality that dazzles and bewitches (found in alphabetical order):
• Arifureta Shokugyou de Sekai Saikyou 3rd Season (aka ‘Arifureta 3rd Season’) / ありふれた職業で世界最強 • C³ (aka ‘CubexCursedxCurious‘) / シーキューブ
• Dance In the Vampire Bund / ダンスインザヴァンパイアバンド • Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu / フルメタル・パニック? ふもっふ Note: It may be possible to watch Fumoffu as a standalone item. If in doubt, just watch it all! But keep in mind, Fumoffu is a great departure from the mood of other installments!
• Hacka Doll: THE Animation / ハッカドール THE あにめーしょん • Hige wo Soru. Soshite Joshikousei wo Hirou. (aka ‘Higehiro‘) / ひげを剃る。そして女子高生を拾う。
• Netoge no Yome wa Onnanoko ja Nai to Omotta? (aka ‘Netoge‘(?)) / ネトゲの嫁は女の子じゃないと思った? • Ore ga Ojou-sama Gakkou ni “Shomin Sample” Toshite Gets-Sareta Ken (aka ‘Shomin Sample‘) / 俺がお嬢様学校に「庶民サンプル」としてゲッツされた件
It may be about now that you’re wondering why some anime are represented by sequels and such. For this there is a bit of reading between the lines:
• Where sequels are present, it is a guarantee that it is not possible for the anime to be any better. • Where a prequel is present, it is a guarantee that it will have you hooked, and you will love the story as much as I do. • Where Tsukimonogatari is present, it is a guarantee that Ononoki is the greatest of all time.
And that about covers that!
Before we get into part three, it does make sense to me to express how much I’d like to properly review those in the next section: I want to! Instead, you’ll be treated to something else for various reasons that I haven’t thought up yet. 😀
Anime’s Greatest Hits, pt. III: A Complement to Existence – The Greatest of the Greats
I have prepared for you, here, the stories that have a vim and luster that I struggle to put into words. Somehow, they are masterful works that weave a tale so enchanting, you ought not blink.
Whether you struggle to peer over the wall of a cardboard box or want to comprehend the compulsory sacrifice made by your ancestors, so that you can live the life you want to live, consider these two titles a rung above!
• xxxHOLIC / XXX ホリック • Isekai wa Smartphone to Tomo ni. (aka ‘IseSuma‘) / 異世界はスマートフォンとともに。
Despite the hand I was given, I just want things to work out! Also, squeaky toys are great because they don’t require batteries upon purchase!
I heard the manga was better, though I wouldn’t know…
• Grenadier: Hohoemi no Senshi (aka ‘Grenadier‘) / グレネーダー 〜ほほえみの閃士〜 • Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii (or ‘The World is Still Beautiful’) / それでも世界は美しい
Guns are implicitly dangerous; respect that or pay the price! —’I love the rain. Here she comes again. Here comes the rain’—*record skip*—’Here comes the sun again. You know it’s knocking me upside my head’—
• Gakkou Gurashi! (aka ‘SCHOOL-LIVE!‘) / がっこうぐらし! • Maria-sama ga Miteru (or ‘Maria Watches Over Us’; aka ‘MariMite‘) / マリア様がみてる
That moment in 1945’s The Picture of Dorian Gray when the camera cuts to his face… —Itou Miki. Need I say more? Also, I offer up my first unborn child to the one who can explain—Never mind! Here: https://marimite.fandom.com/wiki/Yamayurikai
• Astarotte no Omocha! (or ‘Astarotte’s Toy’) / アスタロッテのおもちゃ！ • Kanojo mo Kanojo Season 2 (or ‘Girlfriend, Girlfriend Season 2’) / カノジョも彼女 Season 2
I promise at a future calendar day, I will return with my favourite of Olaf’s haiku! —In Kanojo mo Kanojo, Hiroyuki explores what constitutes a healthy polyamorous relationship, and, in so doing, reveals coincidences merely appear coincidences because of the vast spaces we inhabit in the sandbox of life.
• Kimi ga Aruji de Shitsuji ga Ore de (aka ‘Kimiaru‘ or ‘They Are My Noble Masters’) / 君が主で執事が俺で • Koutetsujou no Kabaneri / 甲鉄城のカバネリ
With the right mentorship and dedication, you, too, can become something great! Then, if it takes a pressurized rod through the heart to break your will, I do believe you stand a chance!
Sometimes I wonder if our world hangs in the balance! Sometimes I think educating the kemonomimi of the world is a supreme asset to ensuring our society prospers now and into the future!
When someone tells you a secret, it doesn’t necessarily connote the same linear makeup present in storing times tables for future use.
• Shuumatsu Nani Shitemasu ka? Isogashii desu ka? Sukutte Moratte Ii desu ka? (aka ‘Sukasuka‘ or ‘WorldEnd‘) / 終末なにしてますか? 忙しいですか? 救ってもらっていいですか? • Gaikotsu Kishi-sama, Tadaima Isekai e Odekakechuu (aka ‘Skeleton Knight In Another World‘) / 骸骨騎士様、只今異世界へお出掛け中
Is a curse often conflated with destiny because of its finality?
• Momochi-san Chi no Ayakashi Ouji / 百千さん家のあやかし王子 • Kill la Kill / キルラキル
The stories to come out of Japan make me consider what the rest of the world is lacking. It doesn’t even make sense! Naturally, this led me to contemplate other countries’ storytellers—those I’d not had the pleasure of encountering… And really, there are so many!
I’m currently in a conference call with two friends, and I asked if there are any similarities between these two… ‘No! It would be strange if there was!’ Yea, I’m not even going to try!
Conclusions
The opportunity to experience the handful of prior eras in anime has been absent for this glimpse into the universe. How many stories are there in novels? How many stories are there in music? To my knowledge, in both sectors, well over multiple lifetimes-worth! When push comes to shove, the one story I am able to tell is my own in the way I see fit. It’s possible that the formula is flawed, but if the jig truly is so ill-prepared, perhaps it is better to be found another use and utilized there instead.
Be sure that, even now, there is a desire to create another section to this article! It isn’t clear what it would be for… How about we discard that thought for now and talk about—
Anime’s Greatest Hits, pt. IV: Grazed By a Moment In Time
I have prepared for you, here, the most stressful story ever put to paper:
This anime is a heart attack! I’ve made it to episode six of season one, and it is NOT getting easier! In fact, it is so stressful, I am unsure that I will survive coming out the other side!
What is this story’s name? Shinigami Bocchan to Kuro Maid, also known as, The Duke of Death and His Maid. AND IT HAS THREE SEASONS-WORTH OF STRESS AND HEART ATTACKS! The third season is airing right now, and if you read the synopsis, you’ll have probably figured out the significance of that.
But it’s crazy to think about how drawn I am to the premise and that it has wonderful pacing, character design, voice acting—and if I could relax at all when watching it, I’d probably notice the OST is excellent too—yet, there doesn’t seem to be any conceivable way for me to watch it unfold.
Truly, this brings me to quite the dilemma: I really dislike the idea of resorting to spoilers! No doubt, at the conclusion of the work, bocchan’s curse is broken, and he and Alice live happily ever after, right? The fact that it isn’t satisfying to just say out loud suggests something is at hand! Somehow, I MUST bring myself to the table!
Conclusions II
Wowzers! We’re here!
Check out the assortment of anime songs I left you with last installment!
